A Family of Monsters
by Deceptive Lies
Summary: For as long as Naruto could remember, there has always been a voice in her head. She was four when she learned that his name was Gaara. FemNarutoxGaara
1. Control

Ever since Naruto could remember, there has always been the voice in her head. The Voice, as Naruto called it, was soft, but most definitely male. He spoke is quiet tones, and once, during one of her many sleepless nights, The Voice even admitted to her that he was quite lonely. He couldn't sleep, _ever_ , so Naruto tried to stay up as well to keep The Voice company. She liked The Voice. He was her only friend.

Naruto quickly found out that other people, _normal_ people, didn't have a voice stuck in their head, well, at least a voice that wasn't their own. Naruto tried to tell Hokage-jiji about it once, but The Voice quickly advised against it. Apparently he had already told _his_ family about the girl in his head, and they were quick to dub him mentally unstable.

Naruto wondered if the voice was actually a real person. He sure _seemed_ real. She could hear every thought he had, feel every ounce of pain he experienced, every shot of loneliness. It was suffocating.

When she was four, she learned that The Voices name was Gaara. He lived in Suna. He had a brother and a sister, and his father was the Kazekage. Naruto in turn told him she had no one. No friends or family. She lived in an orphanage. And the one caretaker assigned to her barely paid her any attention. But to Naruto none of that mattered. She had Gaara.

Both were exceptionally lonely children. They only found solace in each other. They had no friends, bar the odd voice that spoke in their head. Both thought they were going crazy. But both didn't care. As far as Naruto was concerned, Gaara was real.

Slowly but surely, the matrons of the children's home began to grow even more worried. The strange blond jinchuriki would mutter to herself all throughout the day, terrifying not only the other children, but the caretakers as well. They were convinced that she was conversing to the demon she held prisoner, and it was only a matter of time before she unleashed it on all of them.

By the age of five, Naruto knew that she was different, and she wasn't talking about the voice. The orphanage had kicked her out finally, tired of the little demon girl who muttered to herself, so Naruto took to the streets. An elder man who owned a bar in the middle of the red light district took pity on the small orphan, and let her live in the back of his bar where the patrons couldn't get to. Naruto was grateful. She was also confused. People have been hurling names at her in the streets wherever she passed, terms like _monster_ and _demon_ were spewed out at her with a venom so putrid, Naruto flinched in trepidation.

During one of their many sleepless nights, Naruto was reduced to tears, asking her imaginary friend Gaara why, _just why_ , do people hate her so.

"Maybe you're like me." The boy said softly, carefully choosing his words, "People don't like me much, fear me even, because I have a monster trapped in my stomach. Maybe you do too."

That was the day Naruto learned of her accursed fate as a jinchuriki.

* * *

Naruto loved the red light district. People there to her were kind, not like the uptight and stuck up civilians who were wealthy enough to live in the nicer areas. Sure, most people Naruto met were criminals and streetwalkers, but they were _kind_ criminals and streetwalkers. They took pity on the small girl with no home, confused with a demon. They were worldly enough to have met some real demons, and this small adorable orphan wasn't it.

So they helped her. They taught her how to read, a skill completely neglected back at the orphanage. They gave her all the books and scrolls they could find in order to help build up her repertoire, although admittedly, most books were quite seedy in nature. She had lost count how many times she was made to read one of the Icha Icha books.

The ladies and gentlemen of the red light district also regaled her with stories of their travels, teaching her valuable lessons that could be derived from their experience. Naruto was taught to cook, to act, to lie, to deceive. Madam Amelia, the owner of the most famous pleasure house, even taught the girl how to dress. Granted, Naruto probably wouldn't listen to her unless it could be used for a future mission, but since she had yet to start the academy, she dismissed all of the strange woman's advice.

It was strange being homeless, the sole child living in the worst area of Konoha, but she was happy. For the first time in forever, she had friends. Real corporeal friends who didn't only exist in her head. Gaara was happy for her.

It was during this time that she learned that maybe her friend wasn't as imaginary as she believed. One of the patrons at the bar was narrating about his last trip to Suna, where he happened to meet a few _very_ interesting people.

"It was odd little Naruto, he had the same look in his eyes as you do. He had red hair, pale skin, and teal colored eyes. He was sitting all alone in the park, with all of the children giving him a wide berth. Yet when I asked him for directions, he was completely polite! Perhaps a little soft spoken, but completely kind. He even seemed surprised that someone was speaking to him, as if it had never happened before."

Naruto heard a gasp in her head, a gasp that definitely wasn't her own. Naruto's eyes widened, "What… What was his name?"

"Gaara of the Red Sands."

* * *

Now that they knew the truth, that one another _really_ existed, it made their bond all the more stronger. All of a sudden they had a real person for them to confide in, someone who understood exactly what the other one was going through. One of the first things they decided to do, was understand their bond.

"I don't get it Gaara. Why can I hear you, but not anyone else?"

Gaara hummed, "I'm not sure. I know all of the other confirmed jinchuriki are older than we are, perhaps they have a stronger grasp on the bond formed by biju?"

"So you're saying the reason we can hear each other is due to our age?"

"It makes sense. Say, theoretically, all biju had a bond to hear each other's thoughts. This meant it would be translated to jinchuriki as well. Yet most containers are years apart in age, and more importantly, trained in utter chakra control. They might not even know this bond exists. But we are the _exact_ same age, only mere days apart. We didn't have time to get a grasp on our chakra control, thereby inadvertently blocking out each other's thoughts. So by the time our chakra _did_ mature enough to close such a vulnerable pathway, it was too late, for our bond had already developed."

"So you're saying, that if we tried, we could probably reach out to other jinchuriki?"

"Only once our control is pristine. But theoretically, yes we could."

Naruto grinned, "Wicked."

The next few months, Naruto and Gaara did everything they could to perfect their chakra control: balancing leaves, climbing trees, walking on water, everything. It was difficult, but it was necessary. Neither of them had any intention of calling out to other jinchuriki, at least not yet. No, they were much more concerned about being able to block each other out, at least a little bit.

At this point, they could feel and hear every single thing the other did. It was driving them absolutely insane, and they knew it wouldn't be long before their sanity was compromised. So they worked hard to fix it.

They perfected their mental control to the point where they could easily block out the other, unless one of them was deliberately trying to talk to the them, or in times of severe mental, emotional or physical distress. Without the extra strain on their minds, they were able to flourish, while still keeping in touch.

* * *

Naruto was six when the Hokage realized the girl was homeless. He had went to the orphanage for the first time in a year to check up on her, only to find that she hasn't been seen for the last eight months. They said she ran away. The Hokage was reluctant to believe them.

He found her playing poker against a samurai. When she saw him, she shot him a grin so wide and bright, it could have lit the entirety of Konoha.

"JIJI!" She cried, leaping into his arms with the strength of a Shinobi.

"Hello my dear. I am so sorry I haven't visited you sooner." The Hokage apologized meekly, his head bent down in regret.

"It's ok Jiji. You're the Hokage, the leader of a village. I'm just one little girl, I'm not important enough to warrant your attention." Living on the streets for eight months, with only questionable adults for company, has done wondrous things to Naruto's vocabulary. It expanded far wider and farther than most children her age. Barring Gaara of course, who spoke with the wisdom and grace of an elder gentleman. She could hardly believe he was only six as well.

"No Naruto, you are more special than you know." The Hokage told her, tightening his grip on her hand as he led her far away from the red light district.

Naruto wanted to ask if it's all because she's a jinchuriki. Gaara had taught her that word, and thanks to a few trips to the library, and a couple timely placed questions to drunk patrons at the bar, it was confirmed. But Gaara advised her not too. It wouldn't do well if the leader of the village began to suspect her.

So instead, Naruto nodded solemnly, allowing the elder man to drag her away from the life she had built for herself.

* * *

Naruto now had an apartment. A home all to herself, with walls and everything. She had an allowance given to her by the Konaha's Orphans Fund, and enough food to last at least a month. She was miserable.

She missed the district. She went back often enough, but it just wasn't the same, not now that they suspected her to be a pawn of the Hokage's. She almost wished she didn't follow her jiji that day. _Almost._

Nothing could beat that now she had access to the Academy. The Hokage had signed her up immediately, and she had already started attending classes. They were really easy, now that she knew how to read. Although if she were being honest, she had cheated quite a bit. It wasn't necessarily her fault that she shared a head space with a literal genius. Plus, Gaara was all too happy to help her.

Her classmates were ok. A little annoying at times, but not as bad as she feared. The Uchiha was a teme, and his fan girls were the bane of Naruto's existence. But Shikamaru, Choji and Kira were pretty cool.

Everything was finally looking up for the blond. She finally came to terms with leaving her friends at the red light district behind, now that she was making new friends at the academy. She was strong, stronger than anyone knew, all thanks to her secret red-headed friend. She was well on her way to becoming a Shinobi to fear.

But then, one fateful night, Naruto woke up screaming in utter agony.

"GAARA!"


	2. Surprise

The Hokage, for all of his experience and valor, could not remember a time where he was as worried as he was now. It was the middle of the night, the civilians and ninjas of Konoha were sleeping peacefully, when all of a sudden a large, foul spike of chakra shot into the sky. The ANBU and Jonin were up immediately, converging at the sight of the anomaly: Naruto's apartment.

It has been three hours since Dog found the girl shivering and shaking in bed. She was immediately brought to the hospital, but the medics were stumped. For all their knowledge, it seemed as though the young jinchuriki was healthy. Her chakra pathway was clear, and she was physically perfect. There was no reason for her to be in such pain.

Jiraya was not due to arrive for another week, so there was no one around knowledgeable enough to check her seal. Yet a preliminary check from Dog confirmed that it wasn't tampered with. There was just no explanation.

"Jiji?" A small, raspy voice called out. The Hokage was at her bedside immediately.

"Naruto, my dear. You are finally awake." The older man couldn't help the relief that slipped into his voice.

"Where… Where am I?" She asked, looking at the stark white walls that surrounded her.

"The Hospital. You were shaking all night, and you slipped into a coma. A coma is-"

Naruto quickly cut the man off, "I know what a coma is."

"Do you know what happened?"

Naruto paused, and just as she was going to answer, Gaara spoke in her head, "No Naru-chan. You can't tell him. He won't… he won't understand."

Naruto's eyes widened. Gaara sounded like he was crying. That was impossible. Gaara never cries. He was the single strongest person Naruto knew. She vowed in that very moment to kill whoever it was that hurt the boy so much. A laugh cut off her thoughts, "Don't worry about that Naru-chan. I've dealt with him. Now hurry and answer the Hokage, he's starting to look suspicious."

Naruto quickly turned her attention back to her pseudo-grandfather, "Ah, sorry about that jiji. Honestly, it was just a bad dream."

The Hokage looked sympathetic, but still _very suspicious,_ "Bad dreams don't cause people to slip into comas."

This is where she pulls her hidden ace: the guilt card paired with the truth card. According to the thieves in the Red Light District, the best lies were based on truth, "It was a _really_ bad dream jiji. I was… I was a demon. Stomping all over people. I had tails, so many tails I couldn't even count them. Ninjas were attacking me, but I destroyed them all without a second thought. And then… this man appeared. He was blond, and was standing on the head of this huge toad! He made some hand seals… and then there was nothing. Just darkness."

The Hokage's eyes widened in surprise, and that's when Naruto went in for the kill. With a quivering lip, tear welled up in her eyes, she asked softly, "Am I a demon jiji?"

She was pulled into a hug before she was even able to see him move, "No my dear. No you are not. Go to sleep, it has been a long night."

Naruto nodded, lying back down in her hospital bed. A small smirk spread across her features as the old man left the room. She was _very_ good at lying.

* * *

After the day Gaara was attacked by his own uncle, Naruto spent hours stuck in her own head talking to boy. He was spiraling, spiraling so fast Naruto just couldn't seem to catch him. But he was an idiot if he really believed that Naruto would leave him too.

"My uncle, the one man who claimed to love me, tried to murder me. It's kill, or be killed Naruto."

"You, Gaara, are an idiot! I am here for you! You are my _best_ friend! You are my _only_ friend. I will not let you develop this destructive personality. I refuse!"

"Love is a weakness."

"Love is what is connecting the two of us! Love is what is causing me to skip the Academy and talk to you instead."

"I didn't ask for you to do that."

"Yeah well, good thing I love you enough to do it without you asking, huh?"

* * *

Fortunately, after their talk, the boy seemed to have calmed down. Years later, Gaara would admit to Naruto that if it wasn't for her, he probably would have gone on a murdering spree by now.

That didn't mean he didn't kill often though. People still attacked him, and attempts on his life were made at least once a week. Those were dealt with swiftly, which such violent strikes, that all it took was a few months before they stopped all together.

People were avoiding Gaara even more than before. Rumors were spread of the Sand Demon who kills without mercy. Naruto thought the civilians were all idiots, because it was obvious that Gaara only killed those who tried to murder him.

The worst part was that even Gaara's own siblings were avoiding the boy. Their father regularly told them of Gaara's kills, and how powerful the boy could be. The Kazekage wanted to alienate the jinchuriki, for if he can't seem to kill him, then he will leave him completely and utterly alone. Thankfully, he didn't take into account the loud blond that spoke to Gaara in his head.

* * *

For her seventh birthday, the Hokage took Naruto out to her favorite ramen stand, Ichiraku Ramen. As she was slurping down the eighth bowl, the Hokage brought up is upcoming trip, "I have a meeting with the Kazekage about certain border patrols and trade routes. I leave for Suna tomorrow."

Naruto quickly snapped up her head to look at him, "Suna? The village of the sand?"

Sarutobi chuckled, "Yes that Suna."

Slapping her hands together as if in a prayer, she begged, "Please Hokage-sama, take me with you."

The older man leveled a stare at her, confused by this turn of events, "Why do you want to go to Suna Naruto?"

Time to lie again. Naruto willed a tear to spill, "I'm afraid jiji… Without you here in the village, the civilians are more likely to attack me."

"There would be ninjas here to protect you-"

"Can you honestly tell me that some won't take advantage of your absence?"

The Hokage sighed, when did he get so complacent? Unfortunately, the young girl was right; many would take his leave to do something unpleasant to the girl. For her to notice the pattern of violence at such a young age, without even knowing the truth about her tenant, was disconcerting.

"Very well Naru-chan, you can come with me."

The smile that lit up the girls face was more than worth it. Until he saw the bill for the ramen that is.

* * *

The trip to Suna was long and tedious. Many ANBU had joined them as guards, and Naruto was as excitable as ever throughout the trip. At least she kept the ninjas thoroughly entertained with her antics and small pranks.

When the gates of the village finally loomed above them, the Hokage felt it prudent to remind the girl, "Do not cause a disturbance while you are here, ok Naruto? Try not to make yourself known."

She nodded in understanding. Suna did not care much for jinchuriki, "Yes jiji."

While the Hokage was led towards the Kazekage's office, Naruto decided to explore the village. She quickly lost the ANBU that was "secretly" following her, and made her way to where she _knew_ the playground was. Far from the cheers of children, overlooking the young kids as they played without care, was one young boy with startling red hair. His teal eyes were looking up at the sky, counting the clouds as they passed. Contrasting his pale skin was a red tattoo with the kanji for "love".

"You know, I was never allowed to play any games with children. Want to join me?"

The boy snapped to look at her, "Naru-chan?"

The blond jinchuriki grinned, "Hey Gaara. Surprise."


End file.
